Make-and-break device.



C. F. SPLTDRF.

MAKE AND BREAK DEVICE.

APPLIGATION FILED MAY2s,1o1o.

1,037,074, 4 Patented Aug. 27, 1912.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES F. SPLITDORF,'OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO SPLITDORF ELECTRICAL C0., OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

MAKE-AND-BREAK DEVICE.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES E SPLIT- noRr, a citizen of the United States, and resident of New York city, borough of Manhattan, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Make-and- Break Devices, of which the following is a specitication.

In make and break devices for electric circuits, wherein the movable member is operated by a cam or the like, the movable member is frequently provided with a roller to be engaged by the cam, but by reason of the continued engagement of the cam with the roller, and particularly where the cam is rotated at relatively1 high speed, as in magnetos employed in the ignition circuits of automobiles and internal combustion engines generally, the bore of the roller through which its supporting shaft or pin passes, or the bearings of such shaft, or both, frequently wear to a considerable extent, whereby the time or the extent of movement of the contact ot t-he movable member is altered or varies from that originally intended.

The object of my invention is to provide means to overcome such objections, and to enable the cam to continue more accurately in the operation of'such movable member, and also to provide for adjustment in case' of wear of the coacting surfaces between the cam and movable member, whereby uniformity of operation of the make and break device may be more nearly maintained.

In carrying out. my invention I provide the movable 4member' of a make and breek device with an adjustable cam-engaging piece, and means to hold such piecefrom rotation from positions of adjustment, whereby when one portion of the surface of such piece becomes worn said piece may be adjusted to present a new surface for cof action with the cam and be held in such adjusted position.

My invention further comprises novel details of improvement and combinations ot' parts that will be more fully hereinafter set tcrth and then pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanyin;r drawings Jforming part hereof, wherein,

Figure 1. is a face view, partly broken, of a breaker-box for amagneto provided with Specication of Letters Patent.

Application `filed May 28, 1910.

rammed Aug. 2v, 1912.

Serial No. 563,864.

my improvements, and Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2, 2, in Fig. l.

In the. drawings the numeral l indicates a shaft, which may be the armature shaft ot' a magneto, shown provided with a suitable cam 2, and at 3 is a movable member or arm of the make and break device ot the magneto circuit, such as its primary circuit. Member 3 is provided with an adjust-able wearing piece t adapted t-o be engaged by cam 2. Means are provided for holding piece 4 in positions of adjustment, for which purpose I have shown said piece provided with spaced peripheral recesses or grooves 4t adapted to receive a spring 6 carried by member 3, whereby said spring, by entering one of the recesses a, will hold piece 4 in set position, the positions ot said recesses being such that one of the wearing surfaces 4b of piece 4 will be maintained in coacting position with respectto cam 2. Member L1 is shown pivotally supported upon a post 7 secured to a suitable frame or box 8, a suitable spring, such as at 9 or 9, or both, connecting member l with frame or box 8 to normally draw or push member 3 toward the cam.

At 10 is indicated a met al strip or spring secured to member 3 and in circuit with frame or box 8 being shown engaging a pin 11 carried by said box, whereby circuit -from box 8 through member 3 is maintained, although such circuit' may be .maintained in any well known manner. f

Member 3 is provided with a suitablecontact 3n to engage a contact 12 shown carried by a screw 13 supported by post 14, shown insulated from frame or box S. Said frame or box may be supported in any suitable manner, as by a bearing 8 journaled upon a hub or bearing 16 of the magneto frame 17, whereby the breaker-box may be adjusted at will for controlling the time of ignition.

By means of my improvements the wearing surface 4b of the piece 4 will engage cam 2, but piece 4 will not be rotated by said cam. Yet when one of the wearing surfaces 4" has become worn to an undesired extent the piece 4 may be rotated to bring one of the other wearing surfaces 4b into coacting position with respect to cam 2, and be held by spring 6 in such position, and so on. Thus, as the wearing surface of piece 4 is held rmly in position upon its supporting pin 5, which latter is not rotated by the action of cam 2, (wearing piece t being turther held snugly in position by the vpressure of spring 6 thereon), the wear on the parte iS minimized, the life oi the wearing piecen and associated parts is prolonged, and a main advantage is attained that without requiring the removal and replacement o'l a roller for coaction with the cam the relativerela-4 tion of the parts may be conveniently and more accurately maintained and prolonged. rlhereby the time of the break between contacts 3a and 12 with respect to the original or desired time relation of the parts maybe more accurately maintained than where a wearing piece, suoli as a roller carried by the movable member of a make and break device, is subjected to continual rot-ation bythe cam.

My invention is not limited to the details of improvement set forth as the same may be varied, within the scope oit the appended claims, without .departing from the spirit thereof.

Having now described my invention What l claim is l. A make and break device having a movable member provided with an adjustable wearing piece, means to retain the latter set in positions or adjustment and a cam to coact with the wearing piece to operate said member. j l

2. il make and break device lhaving a movable arm provided with a rotatively-adjustable wearing piece, means to hold the latter set in positions of adjustment and a cam to coact with the wearing piece to operate said member.

3. A make and break device having a movable member, an adjustable wearing iece carried thereby, a complemental retaining device carried by said member and coacting with said wearing piece to hold the latter set in position of adjustment and a cam to coact with the wearing piece to operate said member.

e. noaa/,ova

d. A make and break device having a movable member provided with a contact, a rotative actuating member therefor an adjustable Wearing piece carried by t e movable 'member to coact with said actuating member, and means for holding the wearing piece in positions of adjustment.

5. A make and break device comprising amovable member, an adjustable wearing piece having a plurality of wearing surfaces and provided with recesses between said surfaces, and means coacting with said recesses for holding said wearing piece in positions of adjustment.

6. A make and break device comprising a movable member, an adjustable wearing piece havin a plurality of wearing surfaces and provi ed with recessesbetween said surfaces, and a spring carriedby said movable member tor coaction with said recesses to hold said wearing piece in positions of adjustment.

7. rlhe combination of a frame, a movable member carried thereby, an adjustable wearing piece carried by said member, means to retain said wearing piece in positions of adjustment, a cam to coact with said wearing piece, and contacts to make and break the circuit by the operation of said member. v

8. The combination of a frame, a movable member carried thereby and in circuit therewith,l an adjustable wearing piece carried by said member, means to' retain said Wearing piece in positions of adjustment, a rotative cam to coact with said wearing piece, and a contact carried by and insulated from said frame for coaction with said member. ,Y

Signed at New York city, in the county of New York, and State of New York, this 21st day of May, A. D. 1910.

- CHARLES F. SPLl'llDOR-F. Witnesses:

PAUL REIGHERT, SAMUEL lE. GERTLER. 

